This invention relates to a stator winding method and, although not necessarily so limited, more particularly to a stator winding method for winding field coils wound on the outer, cylindrical rim of a cylindrical stator core.
This invention was developed for use in winding field coils on stators for motors having internal stators of the type disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,924,125. Such stators are used with surrounding rotors that rotate about an axis coincident with the center axis of the stator. However, aspects of this invention may be useful for winding other types of electric motor stators.
A key feature of stators of the type disclosed in said U.S. Pat. No. 4,924,125 is that the sides of the stator coils are located on the outer rim surface of the body of the stator, in parallel relation to the center axis of the stator; there are no coil-receiving slots in the stator body itself. In order to manufacture stators of this type, the practice has been to wind the coils separately from the stator body and then to mount the coils onto the stator body, forming the coils as desired to the contours of the stator body and then mounting them, as by tying them together, on the stator body. The processes used in the past are cumbersome, time-consuming, and unduly expensive. Accordingly, there is a need for an improved method and apparatus for manufacturing such stators.